Jelly Babies and Scarves
by Fanatic Whovian Writer
Summary: On Journey's End, not one Metacrisis Doctor emerged. Due to a highly improbably circumstance, all of the Doctor's previous incarnations emerged. This it the story of the Fourth Doctor Metacrisis, choosing to go back to 1978, the year he left Sarah Jane in Aberdeen.
1. Chapter 1

**This originally was going to be a story involving the 4th Doctor, while the others would ****be simply mentioned, but liking the idea, I would be willing to do one for any of the Doctors other than the War Doctor. This came into my head while I was trying to write Idiot's Lantern for my other story, which I cannot seem to get out, so I'll probably skip it for now. Anyways, enjoy!  
**

The music played in the ginger's ears, so loud she could not even hear the TARDIS blowing up next to her. All she could see was the broken glass and more importantly the hand that was once in the glass. She felt like something was controlling her, that the hand was reaching out to her. So, she reached back, touching the hand. Gold dust seemed to blow her onto her back, and when she sat up, the hand was glowing with the gold dust. The dust extended from the hand into a figure roughly the shape of a man. The glow slowly disappeared and revealed a man with spikey brown hair and brown eyes. He sat up with a goofy look on his face.

"Its you!" Donna said getting off of the ground, the brown haired man mirroring the movement. However, with his response on the tip of his lips, he began glowing again, shutting him up. He couldn't move. The dust flowed from his body out onto the floor of the TARDIS forming ten figures of gold dust just as it had with him. The glow disappeared from all eleven at the same time, revealing eleven different men.

"Who. Are. They?" Donna asked exasperated. The first brown haired one looked at the others with a look of complete surprise.

"It can't be..." he whispered before looking at Donna, "They're me."

"They're all naked," Donna said in correction looking up to avoid seeing The Doctors' nakedness.

"Indeed, we are. We should probably get things sorted before explanations," One of the men said, the one with the mop of black hair on his head. The crowd of men seemed to agree.

Later…

"Alright, all fixed," the first brown haired one said pulling on a blue jacket, "She's all fixed."

"Look at you!" Donna said fairly loudly, but a man with a long scarf shushed her.

"Quiet, they'll detect us," the man said holding a finger against his lips his blue eyes wide.

"What are you, some kind of star fish? Regrowing when a limb comes off!" Donna said a bit quieter looking at the ten men in the room, all dressed in their own odd ways.

"Instantaneous biological metacrisis," one with blonde straight hair said taking a step towards her rubbing his hands together nervously.

"I fed all of my regeneration energy into my hand," The first one said waving hello to Donna, "I love this hand, don't you love this hand?" Donna looked completely lost.

"You're confusing her," one with poofy white hair said stepping up, wearing a velvet jacket and a ruffled shirt, "It's all quite simple, when you touched the hand, you caused a reaction with the regeneration energy, causing the regeneration of the hand into the latest model," he indicated the brown haired one with the blue suit, "However due to the influx of energy released due to the TARDIS breaking apart, instead of simply regenerating him, it caused a reaction with a one in a trillion chance of happening, creating all of his past regenerations to emerge." The brown haired one, the one with the blue suit felt himself caught by surprise by something and held a hand to his chest.

"I have one heart!" he exclaimed, and the others hushed him.

"Indeed we do!" said a curly blonde walking in wearing the most ridiculous get up.

"What. Are. You. Wearing?" Donna asked her eyes wide, suppressing a laugh.

"It's quite charming, isn't it?" the curly blonde said with a triumphant smile standing up tall as if posing for a heroic picture.

"Oh dear," an old man with white hair, slicked back said, "And I thought he," he pointed to the one with a mop of hair, "was the clown."

"At least I'm not a grouchy old man!" the curly haired one said taking great insult.

"I forgot how sensitive I used to be," said one with a Scottish accent and an outfit covered with question marks. One of the men leaned against the railing, wearing a leather jacket, in the control room shaking his head at the others.

"We need to get going," the man leaning against the railing said with a northern accent, pushing himself forward, "I hope you all remember how to pilot this thing."

"No need to be rude," one with brown curly hair and the scarf said, "To think I'll grow into a rude person."

"You were quite rude yourself, if I remember correctly," the blonde one wearing a traditional cricket outfit said, the one who rubbed his hands together before.

"Oi spacemen!" Donna said quietly, but loud enough to get attention, "You all are being rude! I don't understand, how can you all be him? You don't look a thing like him!" She pointed to the blue suited one.

"As a Time Lord," one in a Victorian jacket with long brown hair explained quietly, "I can regenerate up to 12 times. I started out as him." He pointed to the white haired one one, "And then changed to him." He pointed to the one with a mop of black hair. "Then him." He pointed to the one with puffy white hair. "And so on." The one with the leather jacket seemed quite impatient.

"Are we going to save the universe, or will we stop off for a cuppa and chat?" the one with the leather jacket asked.

"He's right, we need to go," the one with a colorful scarf said with a nod. All of the men gathered around the console and began working on it, flipping switches and such.

"When we get there, I think the latest model needs to go out on his own," the eldest looking one said, he looked even older than the one with the white hair slicked back. The one with the leather jacket and the Doctor that Donna knew seemed to look at him with disdain.

"Agreed. If things get hairy," The scarf man agreed, "We need more of an element of surprise." The blue suited one nodded before his eyes went wide.

"I have an idea," he said with a huge smile, before dashing from the room without explanation.

"I have an idea too," the one with the longer brown hair said.

"I think we all do," the one with straight blonde hair replied.

"I thought of it first," the one with curly blonde stated with a cocky smile pressing a couple of buttons.

"No you didn't," the one with the Scottish accent replied crossing his arms.

"No fighting," the eldest one said annoyed, "A whole bunch of kids."

"What's the point of being-" the scarfed one began.

"We know," the leather jacket one interrupted, annoyed, "Everyone needs to shut up! They'll detect us."

"Well, there was no need to be snappy," the scarf man said a bit sad at being cut off by himself. In came the blue suited man with some sort of device.

"Quite clever, if I might say so myself," the white poofy haired one said with a nod of approval, "A Z-neutrino biological inversion catalyzer."

"I don't understand," Donna interjected.

"Davros said he built those Daleks out of himself," the blue suit one said a bit too enthusiastically,  
"His genetic code runs through the entire race. If I can use this to lock the Crucible's transmission onto Davros himself, bye-bye Daleks!" A beeping came from the screen and the nearest, the one with a mop of black hair looked at it his eyes widening.

"Oh dear," the man said.

"What?" Donna asked.

"He can't possibly…" the one with the most colorful clothes in the room began, upon seeing the screen.

"What?" Donna asked again.

"Davros," the eldest looking one growled as all of the Doctors gathered around the screen.

"What?" Donna shouted.

"It's the planets. The twenty seven planets," the one with longer brown hair said softly to himself, "Single string Z-neutrinos compressed. No way."

"Hello! Earth girl here! Not understanding!" Donna shouted.

"Quiet," the leather jacket man ordered shaking his head.

"He basically just caused the test subjects to cease existing," The blue suit man said.

"He killed them?" Donna asked.

"It's almost as though… as though… the… test subjects… they were vaporized, condensed them into one thing, exist no more," the white haired one with the hair slicked back explained.

"I don't…" Donna began again.

"If we don't stop him, the entire universe. All of the universes..." the blue suit one said biting his lower lip, "Let's go. Now, before it's too late."

"Agreed," the leather jacket one said, flipping a final switch and the middle cylinder stopped, "Go." And out ran the blue suited Doctor carrying his device. The Doctors and Donna kept a good eye on the monitor watching what was happening. The blue suit was hit with a beam from Davros, Donna rushed out before a Doctor could prevent it and was struck down by Davros as well. The Doctors exchanged a look and all rushed towards the door together. However, just as they were about to leave, Donna got back up and began playing with the controls.

"I'm going out there," the eldest insisted.

"Wait!" the scarf one ordered, but the eldest looking one ignored him and went out there. Many things happened then, the eldest one began on the controls as well, along with the blue suit, and the one who looked just like the blue suit but wore a brown suit. The eldest then set forward the destruction of the Dalek ship and everything, rushing everyone inside.

"You shouldn't have!" the brown suit shouted as the ship exploded around them, "It's just like you of course, destroy everything! This is genocide!"

"I know," the eldest said bowing his head, "And I will go down with the Daleks, as I should have." He shoved the brown suit into the TARDIS, the others having made it inside alright, shutting the door behind him, the TARDIS responding in kind with locking the doors.

"Now I will go down with you, Davros, like I should have when I ended the war," the eldest said walking through the explosions towards the half Dalek man.

Meanwhile, in the TARDIS…

"What is going on Doctor?" Martha exclaimed.

"I'll explain it later," the scarf one said with a smile.

"You're not the Doctor," Martha said shaking her head pointing to the scarf one.

"I am to the Doctor!" the scarf man insisted taken aback by Martha's accusation.

"A previous you," Rose said with wide eyes, "That's it, isn't it?"

"Yes, Rose, it is," the brown suit said as the other doctors operated the TARDIS.

"Are they all…?" Rose asked looking around at the crowd of men.

"Yes, they are," the leather jacket one said from behind her. She turned and her eyes widened, hugging the leather jacket man.

"Doctor!" Rose exclaimed. Meanwhile, Sarah Jane was standing behind the scarf man with a smile.

"I had forgotten how you looked when you were younger," Sarah Jane said with a smile. The scarf one turned quickly around and smiled widely, holding his brown hat down.

"Sarah!" he said, and immediately hugged her without thinking before he let go just as quickly and grinned at her, turning back towards the console. "You've changed a lot, Sarah."

"Oh, not nearly as much as you think," Sarah laughed. They were towing Earth back where it belonged with the TARDIS and did require all of the previous Doctors, minus the one who had stayed behind, to pilot the thing. Donna and Jack were talking as they watched the Doctors pilot their TARDIS. Jackie and Mickey were talking with Rose and the leather jacket man and the brown suit.

They brought Earth back, and landed finally. The scarf Doctor turned back towards Sarah Jane and smiled widely.

"You know," Sarah Jane said, "You didn't drop me off in South Croydon." He raised an eyebrow.

"Oh?" he asked.

"Aberdeen," Sarah Jane teased with a large smile. Meanwhile, Rose was with three doctors, two that looked the same, and the one with the leather jacket. Her mother and Mickey were next to her.

"Rose," the one with the leather jacket said the smile which took up his whole face disappearing, "You don't have much time. You can go back to the other universe."

"I want to stay with you," Rose said, addressing all three.

"Rose, honey," Jackie began, but one look from Rose made her bit her lip and stay quiet.

"You can, but only one of us," the blue suit Doctor said.

"One of those two," the brown suit explained further, "They both have only one life to live, but I… I have to go on. It can't be me." Rose looked from one Doctor to the next.

"But… you're all the same man, aren't you?" Rose asked.

"We are," the leather jacket Doctor answered with a nod.

"And you have the memories of them?" Rose asked the leather jacket Doctor pointing at the two suited Doctors.

"Fleeting, but yes," the leather jacket Doctor answered.

"Then… whichever of you answer my question then," Rose said looking at the two eligible Doctors, the brown suit moving into the background. "What were you going to say on the beach? On the worst day of my life." The two Doctors exchanged a look, as if communicating telepathically. Rose watched the leather jacket Doctor closely, more so than the blue suit Doctor. However when the blue suit Doctor stepped forward, her gaze went to him, as he bowed his head.

"I'm sorry, Rose," the blue suit said shaking his head, "I can't." Rose looked like she was almost in tears at the response looking hopefully at the leather jacket Doctor. The leather jacket one bit his lower lip and looked down for a moment before his eyes met hers.

"I was going to say that I love you," the leather jacket Doctor said aloud. As it turned out the current occupants of the TARDIS quieted down, even nearly all of the Doctors who looked at the leather jacket Doctor with looks ranging from happiness to uneasy to worry. Rose launched herself at the leather jacket Doctor, kissing him. The other Doctors busily looked away, the brightly colored Doctor even whistling awkwardly. The brown suit caught a glance from Sarah Jane as the two embraced each other, expecting some sort of disappointment, but really, she seemed happy. The two ended the lip embrace, but held each other closely still, their eyes locked.

"Rose, darling," Jackie interrupted, causing Rose to look back, but not daring to let go of her Doctor, "You can still come home with us. Bring him along." Rose looked back at the Doctor.

"I will go wherever you want to go," the leather jacket Doctor said, hearing her silent question.

"But do you want to?" Rose asked.

"I want to be wherever makes you happiest," the leather jacket Doctor said looking at Jackie with a straight face, though in her eyes he read the request for a straighter answer, one that would favor what she wanted as well, "I would be happy to live with you in the other universe."

"It's settled," the brown suit Doctor said cutting through, attempting to mask any sort of feeling he was having seeing his previous self with Rose.

"I really have to bolt," Martha said, running towards the door.

"I'll see you around," the brown suit Doctor said waving.

"You better," Martha laughed. Jack made his way towards the door with Martha.

"I'll catch you later, Doctor," Jack said with a smile, "I have to make sure my team's alright." Jack left with Martha. Mickey made a movement just as Sarah Jane began moving towards the door, looking like she had just remembered something important she was forgetting.

"I really have to get going myself. I have a son to get back to," Sarah Jane announced. The scarf Doctor looked at her with a curious look, as did the straight blonde Doctor and the colorful Doctor.

"A son?" the scarf Doctor asked.

"He's only fourteen. It's a long story. You'll see, Doctor," Sarah Jane laughed, "1977, alright?"

"1977?" the straight blonde Doctor asked stepping forward, bouncing a bit, as if nervous.

"That's when he needs to go," Sarah Jane said looking at the scarf Doctor.

"I'll see you then," the scarf Doctor replied, "Probably." She laughed and exited the TARDIS. Now it was Mickey's turn. He turned towards Rose.

"Sorry, I'm staying," Mickey said. Eyes went to the man, especially Rose's, still in the leather jacket Doctor's embrace.

"Mickey?" Rose asked.

"My gran passed away, nice and peaceful. She spent her last years living in a mansion. There's nothing there for me now, certainly not you," Mickey said, "So, a fresh start. Maybe I'll be some alien fighter or something. Who knows? I'm sorry. Good-bye." Mickey quickly ran out of the TARDIS, allowing no protest from Rose or Jackie or heck, even the leather jacket Doctor who looked like he was about to say something. The embrace with the leather jacket Doctor ended and the two exchanged looks. There was silence in the TARDIS. The scarf Doctor was leaning against the railing, the straight blonde Doctor was standing by the console watching the door, the older white haired Doctor straightened himself up.

"We better get going," the older white haired Doctor said, "I think the honor is to the Doctor in the leather jacket. One last go on your old TARDIS?" The leather jacket Doctor smiled widely, taking the console of the ship and nodding.

"Are you ready, Rose?" he asked.

"Yeah," Rose replied with a nod walking up next to him. He smiled at her before he began operating the ship. He was hopping around, hitting it with a hammer, punching in things, and flipping switches. The older white haired Doctor looked horrified at the other Doctor's treatment, but banished the look from his face and did not comment on it at the time. The leather jacket Doctor and Rose said their good-byes and left. The blue suit Doctor looked heartbroken as they left together, and Jackie following. The brown suit had some unfinished business left to do. Donna. He turned to her, wiping her mind, and set course back to Earth to drop her off. The other Doctors understood, and did not complain.

"You'd think I would improve on piloting this thing," the older white haired Doctor stated as they waited for the brown suit to return.

"It doesn't help you throw the manual into a black hole," the question mark covered Doctor said and the black mop haired Doctor raised an eyebrow.

"At least tell me my recorder wasn't thrown in as well," the black mop haired Doctor said.

"No, it wasn't," the blue suit Doctor replied sitting on the TARDIS railing, his red converse on the first bar of the railing while he sat on the second bar of the railing, "I think I replaced it in your jacket after the business with Omega." He reached into his pocket, find the recorder there and smiled widely.

"Oh, I really do become sentimental, don't I?" he said before starting to play 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star' on it, to which the audience of Doctors groaned. "Fine, I'll save it for later." The cosmic hobo seemed upset that his future selves did not appreciate his musical talent. And in can the brown suit. Drenched.

"Where do you want to go?" the brown suit asked, "I'll bring to one time, and give you a piece of TARDIS coral, like I did with the other one who stayed with Rose. Donna came up with the most brilliant idea." He did not seem overly excited at this point. Then again, he just lost his best friend and the woman he loved, both he could never see again. "If you shatterfry the plasmic shell and modify the dimensional stabilizer to a foldback harmonica 36.5 you accelerate the growth power by 59. Five earth years at most to grow it, once the growth chamber is set up."

"That is even more genius than I had thought of!" the colorful Doctor said happily, though the others seemed to ignore this.

"One time, one place. Five years," the scarf Doctor said a bit grimly.

"That is of course, at the most," the recorder Doctor said with a smile, "Alright, then. Where do we want to go?"

"1977, Sarah said I was to go there. South Croydon," the scarf Doctor said and the brown suit nodded. They went around the room and gave their times. Deciding to go in the order of seniority, the first incarnation, the older white haired Doctor, piloted his way to his place, operating the TARDIS for the last time. The TARDIS was nice enough to also change the room back to the colors that there had been when the incarnations had last operated them, so they felt at home, instead of in the coral desktop, which some of them did not like. Once all of the Doctors had gone, the brown suit remained, setting his course for a random time and place, to continue down his journey, alone.

* * *

**Since this was first conceived to follow Four, I do not know yet where the others might choose, so if you'd like me to follow another Doctor, if you would be so kind as to request, and perhaps suggest a time and place they may go. Nine is already taken care of, so if you would like that story, then alright, I can make it at some point. I am not abandoning Ninth Time's the Charm, but for now, the chapters do not want to cooperate. I am still working on them though!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A short chapter, getting everything set up for chapters to come. Enjoy!**

He was dropped off in his requested time, the day that he had dropped off Sarah Jane, but in the actual correct place. Not Aberdeen. He entered Sarah Jane's house with the sonic screwdriver he had been given by his future self, hung a sign that said, 'please knock' and had to wait. And so, instead of just waiting around doing nothing, he found his way through the house and into the garage placing a piece of TARDIS coral on the ground. He looked around at the limited supplies that she had in the garage for supplies. Well, he could probably ask the Brigadier. Though, that would mean that he would have to work for him. He didn't want to do the same as his third-self had to. No, he was a time lord, at least half of one, a being that walked in eternity. He would grow this TARDIS quickly and end his stay on Earth in one point of time as fast as possible. He already wanted to leave. He began unfurling a spool of wire he had found. However, soon a knock interrupted his work. He walked curiously out of the garage, thinking it was a little soon for Sarah Jane to already be home. He opened the door with a wide grin on his face, seeing the face of the Brigadier. Oh well, now he knew that he was here.

"Oh good, you're here Brigadier!" The Doctor said cheerfully, "Sarah's in Aberdeen, I believe. If you wouldn't mind picking her up. Oh, and don't tell her I'm here. It's a surprise." The Brigadier was caught off guard seeing The Doctor there, but he managed to shake it off.

"What are you doing here, Doctor? I thought you had left for good," The Brigadier said expressing the confusion, "Why is Sarah Jane in Aberdeen? Can't you get her yourself?"

"Oh Brigadier," The Doctor said with a laugh, "I will never leave forever. You're stuck with me for the rest of your life." The Brigadier's expression was one of almost dismay mixed with happiness.

"You never stop surprising me, Doctor," The Brigadier said.

"As for Sarah, I dropped her off on accident, and my TARDIS, well, it's out of commission right now," The Doctor replied with a nod, "Now, if you would collect my friend for me, I would be grateful." The Doctor then shut the door and the Brigadier raised an eyebrow, then making a call on his radio.

The Doctor began with the wire again in the garage, pulling out various other metal objects and tying the wire around them, shaping some of the objects into spheres and cylinders and various other shapes. It was awhile later when another knock came at the door. The Doctor dashed from the garage to the door holding his hat on his head, his scarf flying behind him. He stopped at the door and grinned, the visitor opening the door from the outside. He put his hands in his pockets and stood, as the door revealed him to the visitor, which just so happened to be Sarah Jane herself. A look of surprised appeared on her face when she saw him standing there in her house before her eyes narrowed and her hand connected with his face.

"What was that for?" The Doctor asked rubbing his cheek as Sarah Jane wrapped her arms around him.

"I thought you had left forever," Sarah Jane said, "And you got it wrong anyways."

"There was a reason I stopped using that old console room," The Doctor joked, though he knew it was the TARDIS in general that had dropped her off at the wrong place.

"Aberdeen," Sarah said letting go of the taller man, "Luckily, the Brigadier found me and gave me a lift home."

"Oh? It was really that far off?" The Doctor asked with his eyes wide but just playing with her.

"Yes, it was. No apology, at all?" Sarah asked.

"I am sorry, Sarah," The Doctor replied with a small grin on his face. However, before anything else was said, a person popped into view; it was the Brigadier.

"Yes, Doctor," the Brigadier said with his always matter-of-fact way, "Now that this is settled, we need your help." The Doctor rolled his eyes and pretended to nearly fall, throwing a bit of a fit.

"Fine, fine, what is it?" the Doctor groaned.

"There was an artifact we've found, a necklace with a pendant, but it is producing... unexpected results," the Brigadier explained showing the Doctor a picture of the necklace in question and the Doctor merely glanced at it.

"Oh? That's all?" the Doctor said, "Alright. I'll meet you tomorrow."

"No, that won't do, Doctor. I know how you tend to run off," the Brigadier said.

"I can't, though," the Doctor replied, his hands returning to his pockets, "Didn't I say that my TARDIS is out of commission?"

"Did they exile you again?" Sarah Jane asked a bit worried.

"Oh no, my people didn't. You see, I'm not actually your Doctor, but more of a copy. My TARDIS is with a future self of mine," the Doctor explained. Both looked confused. "Think of it like cloning. I'm a clone of my other self. The difference is, I am part human."

"I don't know if I believe you," the Brigadier said a bit unsure.

"Well, you don't have any other choice," the Doctor replied with a nod, "I am working on my TARDIS today, and I will fix your problem tomorrow. Just keep those who've touched the necklace and the necklace quarantined, alright?"

"I need you to come now. My men are acting like drunk fools," the Brigadier insisted.

"Doctor, please?" Sarah asked looking up at the bright blue eyes. The Doctor sighed.

"Fine, fine. I'll go. Only if you give me this list of things," he pulled out a paper from his pocket. The Brigadier looked at it.

"We can give you your old lab back, if you want," the Brigadier suggested.

"No," the Doctor answered, "I don't plan on staying more than I have to."

"We better get going then," Sarah Jane said with a smile skipping out of the house. The Doctor followed Sarah out and the Brigadier followed the Doctor out. The three got into a UNIT car and headed out.

"So, what were you meaning before? You're part human?" Sarah asked.

"Like I said, I'm close to what you would consider a clone mixed with human DNA. Luckily, I kept my brain," the Doctor replied.

"But how?" Sarah asked.

"Regeneration energy contained in a hand reacting with the touch of a human," the Doctor answered.

"In a hand?" The Brigadier asked.

"Yes, in the future, I will lose a hand, which will contain regeneration energy, regrow it, and then the hand which was cut off would react with the energy from this human, and form me," the Doctor explained as simply as he could, "It all is quite complicated."

"I can tell," the Brigadier said listening curiously and a bit confused himself.

"Yes, well, let's hurry and get this over with," the Doctor said.

"About that... You saw the picture, and you seem to know about the artifact. What is it?" the Brigadier asked.

"It's not a necklace," the Doctor said with a chuckle, "It's a ring."

"I don't understand," the Brigadier asked, "It was too big to be a ring."

"For you or I, of course," the Doctor replied with a growing smile.

"A giant alien," Sarah Jane said with a nod.

"Hehlidd, to be exact," the Doctor said with a big grin at this point, "Their jewelry is normally used to keep one intoxicated. You see, the Hehlidd are a species that believes when intoxicated, the ether world is seen. So the rich tend to have jewelry that intoxicates them so they can spend time in the ether world."

"Really?" Sarah asked.

"Their remains of the Hehlidd have not been found in several million years," the Doctor explained, "But it is quite harmless, otherwise."

"Tell that to Benton," the Brigadier stated, "One of the infected knocked him out."

"Humans tend to be violent," the Doctor shrugged.

"And how can you stop it?" the Brigadier asked.

"You'll see," the Doctor said pulling out a sonic screwdriver from his pocket and waving it. "It's not like the old one, but it still works just as well."

"Your other self has it?" Sarah asked.

"Exactly," the Doctor said, "Though over the years, I've tinkered with sonics and I was able to build my own."

"Could you make me one eventually?" Sarah Jane asked causing the Doctor to chuckle.

"If I have time, I will," the Doctor replied. Sarah Jane smiled widely. When they arrived, the Doctor was brought to where the large necklace like ring was, which he then melted with the laser part of his sonic, much to the Brigadier's dismay, telling them that the intoxication would wear off in about a day or so now it was destroyed. The Brigadier arrange for them to go back home.

"Make sure to send those supplies," the Doctor requested.

"I will send them as soon as possible, Doctor," the Brigadier replied with a nod, for he was a man of his word. The two went back to Sarah Jane's house, where the Doctor made a beeline for the garage.

"What're you doing in here?" Sarah Jane asked following him seeing the small coral and the array of wires and such.

"Growing a TARDIS," the Doctor answered busying himself with wrapping the wire around a metal object." I do hope you don't mind." He looked up at her with a grin.

"No, not at all," Sarah said with a nod and then laughing.

"What?" the Doctor said looking up with a curious look, but she didn't answer, though she held in the giggles. "What?"

"Nothing. It's just you without the TARDIS and you still are tinkering around and making you a new one... it's all... rather adorable," Sarah admitted to which the Doctor responded with a raised eyebrow.

"Me? Adorable?" the Doctor asked before he chuckled himself, "Can you hand me a screwdriver?"

"Your screwdriver won't work?" Sarah Jane laughed picking up the nearby screwdriver and handing it to him.

"It won't work on wood," the Doctor replied. Thing was, he wasn't working with anything wood. However, he stood and walked over to a wood cabinet. "Do you mind, if I use this?"

"My aunt might mind, but go ahead. I can replace it," Sarah Jane replied with a smile. The Doctor looked at her with one of those wide eyed looks and grinned wildly before turning back and prying the cabinet door off and bringing it over to the device he was building.

"If I can help..." Sarah began slowly watching the Doctor tinkering. He said nothing. She sighed. "I'll go make some dinner, alright?" He still didn't answer. He was still tinkering away. "If you need me, I'll be in the kitchen, alright?" He still seemed to ignore her, and she sighed, walking out. The Doctor looked up at the door and sighed shaking his curly head of hair. He looked back down at the cabinet door and began working again.


	3. Chapter 3

The supplies the Doctor ordered arrived the next day, which he was quite excited about, busying himself with working on growing his TARDIS. Sarah Jane had spent the whole day helping the Doctor, handing him what he needed. The two talked, or really, Sarah Jane talked and the Doctor seemed not to even notice she was talking, while really, he was listening to her. The Doctor soon found that this new body of his actually really needed to sleep, and he needed to eat more often. It was like he was human or something... Hold on... he was human or something now. He kept seeming to forget that about him. Already a day had passed and he desperately wanted to get out of there. He hated being confined to one time, one planet. Sarah Jane noticed, of course, knowing her Doctor well enough to know he hated being held down to one time and one planet. She had made some sandwiches for lunch from supplies she had bought the day before after the whole UNIT thing.

"How long will it take?" Sarah Jane asked as he worked.

"Oh, I don't know. Anywhere from a year to a thousand years," the Doctor answered, "Screwdriver." Sarah handed him the sonic screwdriver.

"You're kidding, aren't you?" Sarah Jane asked.

"Not at all," he answered activating the screwdriver for a moment and handing it back, "Scanner." The two of them had come to use shortened names for each of the devices he used so it took a few seconds less a day to ask for something. She handed him a long skinny little piece of metal covered with blinking lights.

"So, you don't even know if you'll be able to ever leave?" Sarah Jane asked.

"Of course I will. It's just a matter of when," the Doctor answered.

"I hope it's sooner than later," Sarah Jane said.

"What? Don't you like living with me?" the Doctor asked pretending to be offended.

"No, I love it, Doctor," Sarah Jane replied, "I know that you hate being stuck in one place."

"Yes, I do hate it," the Doctor replied looking up from his work for a moment, "But it's better if I can spend it with my best friend." Sarah Jane watched him with a huge smile, as he watched her with a grin on his face as well.

"Spinny thing," the Doctor ordered and Sarah Jane handed him a device with a spinning end on it. He looked back at his work and continued working. Soon, he smiled widely as lights seemed to go off on the thing he was building. "It's working."

"What does that mean?" Sarah asked seeing the excitement in his eyes.

"It means, it probably won't take a thousand years. At the most half a thousand," he replied.

"That's good!" Sarah said with a grin, "Now," her expression turned more serious and strict, "You've worked through the night. Bed time."

"Sarah, I don't need as much sleep," the Doctor replied, though he could feel the major effects on having not slept the night before, hiding them the best he could and working through the sleepiness.

"You're part human now, aren't you?" Sarah asked.

"Yes, I am, but that does not mean-" he began to answer.

"I think it does. I haven't ever seen you tired before, but I can tell you are right now," Sarah said crossing her arms.

"I'm not going," the Doctor said shaking his head.

"Don't make me drag you," Sarah threatened. While the Doctor knew that she couldn't really drag him to the room he sighed.

"Sarah, I am not tired," the Doctor insisted.

"Well, then at least try to sleep, alright?" Sarah said sitting next to him.

"That would waste time, Sarah. The more time it takes, the more time I'm stuck here," the Doctor said, "It's not done. It's only semi-operational. It won't be fully operational for several weeks. More if I waste time attempting to sleep. I don't need it, alright, Sarah?" She shook her head.

"You need sleep. I can see it in your eyes," Sarah said, "Just the once, stop being stubborn." He sighed and looked down at his project.

"Fine," he sighed, getting off of the ground. She stood with him with a smile.

"Good!" Sarah said happily, "Come on, I'll show you your room." She led him out of the garage and up a set of stairs to the second bedroom, and the only other room other than her room, where he insisted on opening the door for himself. She watched him walk over to the bed and sit down. She gestured for him to lay down, to which he responded with a sigh and laid down. She smiled and closed the door.

When he awoke, several hours later, he found himself without his jacket or scarf on, and a plate with a sandwich and a bowl of tomato soup. He saw his jacket and scarf hanging on the door across the room. The Doctor did in fact feel better, but there was something very wrong. Very wrong indeed. He was the one who was supposed to take care of his friends, not the other way around. He couldn't let Sarah Jane do all these things for him. He had to be the one that she could depend on. Why? Well, he just felt that it was the way it was supposed to be. Otherwise, he would have to depend upon her, and no matter how much he trusted her and cared for her, things had to be in his control. Everything would be just fine if he were to depend upon her, but he wouldn't be in control. That was something he needed, especially while his TARDIS was growing. A note sat by the food which he picked up and read.

Doctor,

I've gone to work. The stories won't wait for me. Make sure to eat and sleep when you need to. I'll be back later today.

Sarah

PS: Try to stay out of trouble.

That was right. Sarah Jane had a job, mostly for UNIT, but also for a newspaper when she could get something in, paid for each article she wrote up. He had forgotten that. They had been travelling for awhile, and he had a bit of a scatter brain of memories. He sighed, taking a bite of the sandwich before getting up and putting on his jacket and scarf. The Doctor spent hours working on the TARDIS, losing track of time in the windowless garage. He pulled out his watch from a jacket pocket, and looked at it. He may not have known exactly how late she was supposed to stay at her job, but it was getting a little late. Almost at the turn of a new day. While he was getting tired due to this new body, he was quite concentrated on the TARDIS growth chamber where he didn't feel the brain power decrease due to lack of sleep. He decided he would wait a little while longer before he would begin to worry about where Sarah Jane was, especially since he wasn't sure when she was supposed to get back. An hour passed. It was the next day by now, early in the morning, and she still wasn't back. He finished the work he was on at the moment and told himself he would call UNIT to see if she was there. However, in the middle of working, he fell asleep. When he awoke, he cursed himself and checked the time. It was the morning now. Early morning, but still morning. He had slept for a couple of hours at least. He wanted to slap himself. He quickly searched the house for any hint that Sarah had been there, but he found none. The Doctor dialed in the number for UNIT headquarters.

"Is Sarah Jane Smith there?" He asked.

"Is that you Doctor?" A familiar voice answered.

"Sargent Benton," the Doctor said, "Is Sarah there?"

"Uh, no sir. She was here yesterday, though. She said she was going to investigate this... real estate agency," Benton answered.

"Do you remember what it was called?" the Doctor asked.

"She's not home yet, Doctor?" Benton asked curiously, "It's really late for her to still be out."

"Do you remember what it was called?" the Doctor repeated.

"I think... it was called Birmingham Real Estate," Benton answered.

"Thank you," the Doctor said hanging up the phone quickly so Benton could not ask anything else. The Doctor quickly left the house, locking it with his sonic screwdriver behind him. He tucked the device in his pocket and threw an end of his colorful scarf over his shoulder holding his hat on his head, running down the street. It occurred to him he did not know where he was going, having never heard of the said real estate agency, and so the first person he came upon he asked. The first person he found was quite obviously drunk, laying on a bus bench. The answer he got was the guy puking by his feet, luckily missing his shoes. He bid the man a good night and ran off. Luckily, he happened across a sober person who was a night guard for a building. He was given directions to the apparently well-known building, which was a fairly long distance away. However, he did neglect to carry any money with him; he could not call a cab. So he ran the whole way, finding himself standing in front of the building which was connected to a French restaurant and a loan lender, one on each side. He peeked through the windows, the place appearing to be shut down. The Doctor made his way to the back of place, and placed his ear against the back door. He heard nothing. The Doctor sighed, thinking of where else Sarah Jane could be, when he heard voices coming up the alley way. He quickly hid himself behind a nearby dumpster.

"The girl's taken care of?" One asked, the voice sounded not human at all.

"Yes sir," the other voice answered. This one sounded human, and almost like a small boy. The Doctor peered carefully around the side of the dumpster catching a glimpse of the two people, one much shorter than the other and the other fumbling keys around looking for the right key. The taller did look human, though, but it could just be the cover of the early morning sky.

"Oh good. Then the experiment can go on," the non-human sounding one said opening the door, "Good job Axigil." The two entered the door. The Doctor did not move for a short amount of time, to be sure one did not quickly turn to exit. He pressed his ear against the door, hearing mostly mumbles, but catching the words 'coming', 'trouble', and 'stairs'. The Doctor looked up, seeing windows to an upstairs, but the curtains were drawn. This did not seem good. A girl being taken care of; if that wasn't Sarah (he believed it was Sarah, though), then it was some other girl who was probably hurt or dead. He hoped it wasn't Sarah. He saw for a moment the curtains move a little bit, as if in a hurried peek, but nothing more. He listened at the door again, hearing footsteps coming closer, and he quickly hid at the dumpster again. The two left the store, the taller locking the door and walking down the alley, away from him.

Once they were clear of the alley, he hurried to the door, unlocking it with his sonic screw driver and quietly entering. It looked like a normal sort of small office building, with stairs to his right, which he snuck up. Upstairs there were two doors. From his approximation the one with the curtains that seemed to move before was the one on the far right, so he went to it, checked to see if it was locked, which it was, and unlocked it, pulling it open.

Inside all he saw was the legs of a chair, which he quickly dodge, the side still catching his shoulder with a loud bang.

"Doctor!" came a voice from the wielder of the chair, in an urgent whisper. It was Sarah Jane Smith. "I'm sorry! I thought you were the boy!"

"Axigil?" the Doctor asked, recovering quickly from the hit of the chair.

"Yeah," Sarah Jane said.

"Come on," the Doctor said, gesturing for the two of them to leave. Sarah nodded and followed him down the stairs.

"He's a creepy one, the tall one. Told the boy to kill me, but the boy tied me up there instead," Sarah Jane explained in a whisper.

"They've only left for a little while," the Doctor whispered, "We better get out while we can." He turned the corner by the stairs and looked at the back door, where a shaded figure could be seen. The Doctor stood straight and stopped.

"Well," the non-human voice said, as the figure crossed it's arms, "Intruders. Seems Axigil did not do the job well enough. I've already taken care of him." The figure flicked on the lights, revealing a fairly normal human female with blazing red hair and bright blue eyes. She was thin, and tall. Boy was she tall. Even taller then the Doctor. Sarah Jane stood at the Doctor's side confidently.

"Oh hello! Just taking a stroll, you see," the Doctor said with a wide smile appearing on his face, "I saw the door open and was curious."

"I don't believe you," the woman replied with a wicked smile, "I could smell you in the alley, and I knew you were waiting."

"Do I really smell that bad?" the Doctor asked, taking a step closer to the woman. "Sarah?" He turned towards Sarah, "Do I smell that bad?" She sniffed him.

"No, you smell fine, Doctor," Sarah replied with a smile.

"So, in order for you to smell me, you must be an extraordinary human. Where are you from?" the Doctor asked turning back to the woman.

"I am Ilbial of the Ikikd Empire," the woman announced.

"Oh? And where's that? I bet it's somewhere in Australia. They seem to have good noses. Is it near Sydney?" the Doctor asked, playing dumb.

"I don't know whether you are incredibly stupid or incredibly smart," Ilbial said, "I think you've earned yourself a nice long death." She took the Doctor with her left hand and Sarah with her right. It was actually a whole lot pressure on their arms, making it impossible to break, despite Sarah's struggling.

"Long deaths are nice, especially if they are the experimental way!" the Doctor said as they were dragged upstairs to the room on the left.

"Then you will be very happy," Ilbial said slightly annoyed, "But first, I'll get the truth out of you." The door opened into a much larger space which seemed completely made of metal.

"Oh, that was fancy," the Doctor said, "Where are we?"

"My home," Ilbial answered, "orbiting around your primitive planet."

"Welcome back, Ilbial," a computerized voice said, "Hail the mighty Ilkikd Empire. There is a class one device detected on the unknown entrants."

"Oh?" Ilbial looked at the two she was carrying, "Identify."

"It appears to be a sonic device. Computing," the voice answered, "A sonic screwdriver." Ilbial threw the Doctor into a chair in the center of the room, which immediately secured him to the table. Ilbial then placed Sarah on the ground by the table. "If you try to escape, you'll find yourself in the vacuum of space. Only I can make the door open back to Earth." Sarah looked at Ilbial with a frown and looking up at the chair by her, where she saw his long scarf hanging down the side. Ilbial filled an odd device with a kind of liquid. It was a small thumb sized object, which resembled an oreo cookie without the white.

"Would you like a jelly baby? I have some in my pockets," The Doctor offered, "If you would let me get you one…" She placed it on the Doctor's forehead, moving the brown curls out of the way. "What is it?" he asked curiously, his eyes going cross-eyed looking at it.

"The most powerful truth serum in the universe," Ilbial answered, "Now it's my turn to ask the questions." Ilbial turned on a screen next to the chair, showing strange symbols, which the Doctor could not read. Probably because the TARDIS was not grown-up at all yet and wasn't affecting his brain by translating. "What is your name?"

"My name is the Doctor," he answered.

"Doctor who?" Ilbial asked.

"Just the Doctor. That's it," he replied, "It's one of three names I have. However, I am known most widely as The Doctor."

"Where are you from, Doctor?" Ilbial asked watching the screen, glancing at the scarf wearing Doctor occasionally.

"Gallifrey," the Doctor answered mechanically.

"You're a Time Lord?" Ilbial asked looking at him confused, "Your readings aren't coming out as Time Lord."

"There was an accident, and I was born half human just two days ago," the Doctor answered, "Instantaneous biological meta-crisis. You wouldn't understand if I tried to explain it further." Sarah bit her lip, looking at the Doctor who was spilling his whole story and unable to counter it. She had to do something.

"Alright, let's say I don't. You're half human because of this accident?" Ilbial questioned.

"Yes," he answered.

"Why did you come to my place?" Ilbial asked.

"My friend Sarah was missing, and someone said she was coming here. So I came to check," he answered.

"This early?" Ilbial asked, sounding like she did not believe him, despite under the control of the supposibly irresisitable truth drug.

"I was working most of the night," the Doctor answered, "You know, you are a fascinating creature. What do you look like without the disguise?" Ilbial raised an eyebrow.

"You talk too much. I'm the one asking the questions here," Ilbial snapped.

"Oh? Is that because you can't? The Ilkikd, last I heard, could not imitate the looks of another species. Being so much different from humans, it must have been a hard task," the Doctor said quickly wearing one of those crazy grins.

"I could change back if I want to!" Ilbial insisted, "I just don't want to."

"Oh yes. I think you used a Camelion Arch," the Doctor said, "A bit of Time Lord Science. It leaves a very remarkable trace when converting a being into a species so different from you. Those eyes. Now, it's a matter of how you got ahold of one."

"Quiet! Or I'll kill your friend," Ilbial threatened. The Doctor opened his mouth to speak again, but closed it again without saying anything. Meanwhile, during all of this, Sarah was sitting there, listening and trying to think of something she could do.

"Psst," a quiet voice said, and suddenly she noticed the boy, Axigil. She even had looked there a moment earlier and didn't notice anything, but there he was.

"What are you doing?" Sarah whispered back urgently. She was not quite happy at seeing the boy who had locked her up, though it was due to him that she was indeed still alive. Axigil gestured her to be quiet. He pointed to Ilbial nearby and then at the door.

"Who was this person who told you where the girl was?" Ilbial asked. Axilgil was still not noticed by Ilbial, or Ilbial was ignoring the boy. The Doctor was quiet shrugging.

"You can speak now!" Ilbial said annoyed.

"Oh good! Sargent Benton, of UNIT," the Doctor replied.

"UNIT?" Ilbial asked. However, before the Doctor even opened his mouth to speak, Axigil charged Ilbial, knocking her to the ground. Sarah quickly got up and undid the Doctor's bonds.

"Computer, close exit!" Ilbial yelled as the two ran for the exit they had entered in.

"Locked," the computer said.

"Computer open exit!" Axigil yelled, mimicing Ilbial's voice perfectly.

"Locks open," the computer said. Sarah and the Doctor hurried through the door, Axigil holding Ilbial's mouth shut.

"Axigil!" Sarah shouted, but he gestured them to go. The Doctor pulled Sarah away from the door and the two quickly ran from the building.

"We can't just leave him!" Sarah protested.

"He won't be killed," the Doctor said pulling the truth oreo object off of his head.

"So? How do you know that?" Sarah asked, keeping up with the Doctor, though lookinng back.

"I don't," the Doctor replied.

"Do you even care that he just saved us?" Sarah asked incredulously, stopping. It was still very dark out.

"I do," the Doctor said stopping with her and looking at her seriously, "I prefer to look on the brighter side of things, because if I dwell on something, it would create unnecessary clouding of my judgment." The Doctor blinked a couple of times. "That truth serum still hasn't worn off."

"But what if Axigil is dead?" Sarah asked.

"Then I will be very disappointed and I would regret leaving him behind," the Doctor answered, "We need to get going. We can't look back now. Ilbial will probably be looking for us by now. Axigil couldn't hold her back for too long." Sarah crossed her arms and stormed passed him, and the Doctor followed her quickly.

"What were you thinking going off on your own like that?" the Doctor asked as they went on.

"I can take care of myself," Sarah replied with a huff.

"I know that, but if you go off on dangerous missions, and end up getting hurt, I would never be able to live with myself," the Doctor said cursing himself inside. The truth serum thing did more than make him answer questions truthfully, but made him also express at least half of what he was thinking. This might not end well, knowing some of the things that passed through his head while around Sarah.

"Doctor, I didn't go because it was dangerous. There was just a series of disappearances, all connecting to the agency," Sarah sighed, her anger seeming to disappear mostly, slowing down so she was next to him, "I didn't realize it was aliens until I overheard them talking."

"What did they say?" the Doctor asked.

"Something about 'the experiments aren't working, we need more test subjects.' Or something like that," Sarah answered.

"Hmmmm..." the Doctor said staring in front of him.

"What do you think they're up to?" Sarah Jane asked.

"I don't know," the Doctor said truthfully, as he was forced to, "But I do have a several guesses." Sarah nodded biting her lower lip.

"Would you tell me?" Sarah asked.

"I would prefer not to, because if it turns out I'm completely wrong, you'll begin to question my judgment, and perhaps lose trust in me," the Doctor said quickly before he closed his mouth just as quickly.

"Oh? That hasn't stopped you before," Sarah Jane noted with a questioning look.

"Before I didn't need to, my previous-self did that," the Doctor explained, "Now that I'm back, after dropping you off for what seemed like forever, and I'm part human, I must gain your trust again." He looked horrified at his words, but then again, it wasn't as bad as he thought it could get.

"No, I trust you," Sarah said with a smile.

"How do you know I'm really your Doctor then?" He asked.

"The look in your eyes," Sarah answered, "There's a… a look in those eyes. No one could ever mimic that." She bumped against him playfully with a smile as they reached her house.

"I think you need sleep," the Doctor said, "I can take care of this my-"

"No, I'm not leaving you," Sarah interrupted, "I had some sleep in that room, don't worry about me. So. Where are we going to go?" The Doctor smiled widely at Sarah and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"UNIT. I need to get something from my old stuff," The Doctor answered.

"Let's take a cab then," Sarah said calling a cab and telling the cabby where to go.

"You know, it wasn't that long after you left me," Sarah noted.

"For you. For me… it's been more than half a century," The Doctor answered looking at her, his normal smile gone from his face, "I never came back for you." Sarah bit her lower lip.

"Why not?" Sarah asked.

"I was scared, Sarah," The Doctor replied, pleading with her in his eyes to not ask any more. She didn't ask any more. After all, he was under the influence of some drug that was making him answer. The cab pulled up to the UNIT headquarters, and instantly they could tell something was wrong. There were no guards at the gate. The Doctor got out quickly and Sarah paid the cabby before following him out.

"Something's wrong," Sarah Jane said looking at the Doctor as the cab drove off.

"I think they found Benton," the Doctor said quietly, before going quickly through the unguarded gate, "Stay here, alright? It might be dangerous." Sarah crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Not going to happen, Doctor," Sarah said as the Doctor walked off, and her following at her side.

"Fine, just be careful," the Doctor said, his hands in his pockets as he walked at a brisk pace towards the main headquarters building.

"I am always careful," Sarah replied. The two made it to the building, but found it completely deserted. They quietly walked through the halls, peeking around the corners, but seeing no one.

"Where is everyone? Surely Ilbial couldn't take everyone," Sarah whispered. The Doctor held a finger to his slips and Sarah fell silent again. They snuck around a few more corners, reaching where his old lab had been and peering through the window, where he saw something and quickly ducked down.

Inside the lab was several UNIT soldiers, including the Brigadier and Benton. There was definitely not enough to account for the whole compound though. Some were still missing. Ilbial was in the room and someone else standing next to her. The other person was a tall man with silver hair and stormy grey eyes. He was extremely skinny, and was wearing worn blue jeans and a plain white t-shirt. Sarah quickly looked herself, and the Doctor quickly pulled her down. He pressed his ear up against the door and listened, though it was hard to hear everything through a door.

"Why does it matter Ilbial?" An unidentified voice asked, probably belonging to the grey haired man. The Doctor began to refer to him in his head as Tom, just so he wouldn't have to think 'that one guy who he didn't know' every time he spoke.

"I want to know who gave us him," Ilbial answered.

"It's not like you're going to treat this Benton any better," Tom replied sounding a bit of frustrated.

"Benton will get _special _treatment," Ilbial said. The way she said /special/ did not sound the best.

"I told you, I'm Benton," the Brigadier's voice came.

"Stop it, sir," Benton said back, "I am Sargent Benton."

"Will you all stop lying? I'm Benton," another UNIT soldier said.

"Why don't I get someone who will tell me?" Ilbial asked as the door opened and the Doctor fell inside the room, Sarah falling with her.

"Oh, hello!" The Doctor said as Tom held the two by their arms so they couldn't run.

"Glad of you to join us, Doctor," Ilbial said.

"Who is your assistant here?" The Doctor asked with a grin, "He's so strong." He noticed one of the lab tables far away held the rifles of the UNIT soldiers.

"Don't you recognize him?" Ilbial laughed.

"No. Am I supposed to?" the Doctor asked curiously, tilting his head.

"Doctor," Tom said, "I'm Axigil."

"You are not Axigil," Sarah said shaking her head.

"Yes I am. I regenerated," Axigil replied.

"You're a Time Lord?" Sarah asked confused.

"Yes," Axigil replied, "Ilbial found me on a deserted planet a long way away, and took me in. She began experimenting on me, trying to understand regeneration. I had to have been born maybe ten years before she found me. She wanted to eventually make an artificial Time Lord, so to speak."

"So she may regenerate herself at some point?" Sarah asked.

"Oh, clever, Ilbial, clever," the Doctor said, clapping his hands and seeing out of the corner of his eye the actual Benton dive behind one of the tables, slowly, the other two not seeming to notice the UNIT soldier disappearing from the small group, "Taking on such a task that no one else has ever accomplished. Especially now that all of the Time Lords are gone. Well, except for Axigil here. His parents must have hidden him away before the war."

"What war?" the Brigadier asked raising an eyebrow.

"Time War, time lords wiped out," the Doctor quickly explained.

"I will be the first," Ilbial replied standing up as straight as she possibly could, "Axigil has proved quite a help. Not only his biology, and the study of when he regenerates, but his Camelion Arch. If I can make a human regenerate, I can too, now that I am a human."

"Oh yes," the Doctor said, "I would be happy to help you out, if you would like." Ilbial raised an eyebrow, but whatever she was going to say was drowned out by a gunshot and a yell from Ilbial. By the table with the guns Benton stood, with a smoking gun pointing towards Ilbial. Ilbial fell to the ground and Axigil ran by her side.

"Seems like you won't make it to regeneration," Axigil said with a small laugh. Sarah and the Doctor approached Ilbial and Axigil. The Doctor kneeled next to them, and Sarah followed in suit.

"Be a good boy," Ilbial said with a laugh, "Make these humans pay."

"Sorry, I can't do that," Axigil replied.

"This new regeneration of yours, it's not like the boy I know," Ilbial replied, then looked over at the Doctor and Sarah, "Doctor, it was a pleasure to know you."

"I can't say the same," the Doctor replied, "I am sorry that you have to die."

"Yes, you should," Ilbial said as she held her hand up fading away, dead on the floor, her hand dropping on Sarah's knee. Axigil's eyes widened.

"Oh no," Axigil said backing away, "I'm sorry."

"Why?" the Doctor asked standing up quickly.

"Ilbial. She..." Axigil said looking down at the tall red head. The Doctor didn't understand.

"Doctor," the Brigadier said quickly stepping forward, "Ms. Smith."

"Sarah?" The Doctor said looking back seeing her on the ground. He rushed to her side, examining her. Her eyes were closed, and when he forced them open. Where the white usually was red was. He felt her pulse, and listening to her breathing closely. He quickly stood and began pacing.

"The eyes," he mumbled to himself, "Think Ilbial's path to earth; transfer by touch. Breathing, pulse, consciousness..." Axigil bit his lip.

"Doctor," Sarah muttered. He quickly turned towards her and then began pacing faster and mumbled some indecipherable words.

"Trywalder Blood Fever!" The Doctor exclaimed before quickly approaching Axigil, "The cure. Cure, cure, cure."

"If it is Trywalder... there isn't one," Axigil interrupted making the Doctor look at him like a deer in headlights, before returning to pacing.

"There has to!" The Doctor insisted his hands hitting the sides of his head as if it were going to jog his memory of a possible cure.

"Doctor, please," Sarah mumbled. He quickly kneeled at her side. He ran his hand through her hair.

"I'm sorry Sarah. It's not looking good," the Doctor said softly.

"It's... alright," Sarah replied slowly.

"I don't know what to do," the Doctor admitted.

"You'll find... out something," Sarah replied with a forced smile.

"I will," the Doctor lied (as far as he knew, at least) with a small, sad smile.

"Doctor," Axigil said taking a step closer. The Doctor looked up at Axigil his smile disappearing quickly.

"What? Do you have something?" The Doctor asked.

"Maybe," Axigil answered kneeling next to them, "Ilbial wouldn't tell me what infection she was threatening me with, but just in case she infected herself..." He pulled out something from his pocket. It was a small silver thing that could fit around one's palm. It was smooth and metal with a bit of a raised area where the back of one's hand would be.

"Oh, don't tell me..." The Doctor said snatching the device and examining it.

"You can... save her, at a cost, of course," Axigil explained, "I just... it's too much of a risk."

"I'd die in her place," the Doctor stated before looking at Sarah, "Sarah, I have an idea."

"I knew, you would..." Sarah began, taking a sharp breath. The Doctor slipped the device on his right hand.

"It's alright, you'll be alright," the Doctor said quietly before placing his hand with the device on her arm. Axigil tore his eyes away, and quickly sent the UNIT soldiers to where the other soldiers were being kept. The white of the Doctor's eyes turned red, and he fell down. Sarah slowly rose, opening her eyes, the red slowly draining away. When it was all done, the Doctor was the one of the floor and Sarah was sitting next to him, their roles reversed.

"Doctor... why?" Sarah asked setting his head on her knees which were straight out in front of her. He gave one of his famous crazy smiles.

"You're..." the Doctor began, suppressing a shot of pain, "my best friend, Sarah."

"You're going to die because of me," Sarah said quite upset.

"That was Ilbial," Axigil interjected, before taking a step forward.

"Yeah, and you," Sarah accused.

"Stop, Sarah," the Doctor said, "He was just... it wasn't him who infected you."

"So?" Sarah said, her anger beginning to bubble up, "He's got to have a way that can cure you. What if Ilbial accidently infected herself? She had to have a backup plan." Axigil was looking quite nervous and worried, his hands in his pants pockets. He took another step closer and kneeled down taking one hand out of his pockets and pulling off the device the Doctor used to transfer the Trywalder Blood Fever to him.

"The same way he healed you, Sarah" Axigil explained, "She was planning on making me use it if she got herself. And I was perfectly willing... well, I don't think I would after I regenerated into this body."

"She was going to use you to do it? Why would you even agree?" Sarah asked.

"Same reason he did," Axigil shrugged, putting the device on his own hand, "Same reason I'm going to help you, Sarah."

"No," the Doctor said instantly, "Don't."

"You don't have any choice in the matter," Axigil replied with a sigh before looking at Sarah Jane with a small smile, "You'll have your best friend. I didn't think he would actually do it, and I was planning on using it on you if he decided against it. I... just wanted to see."

"Why would you...?" Sarah asked.

"Same reason I kept you alive in my last life," Axigil shrugged, "You deserve to live, Sarah, and those who you care for do too." Sarah bit her lower lip. Selfishness prevented her from preventing Axigil from touching the Doctor with the device, though right afterwards she regretted it, even if she was happy the Doctor would be back. The Doctor rose to a sitting position as Axigil fell to the floor and Sarah scooted over to him, and the Doctor watched, after he stood up.

"Do you think... I could have had a chance with you... if I lived?" Axigil asked as the regeneration tried to start, but was extinguished quickly by the blood fever.

"If you lived...? Why don't you regenerate?" Sarah asked biting her lower lip.

"Trywalder Blood Fever prevents any sort of regeneration," the Doctor said, Sarah looking up at him as he spoke and then looking back at Axigil.

"Please, answer my question," Axigil said weakly, his breathing becoming more rapid.

"I-I... Maybe. I don't know," Sarah admitted, "If you were to... live, I would at least give you a chance." Axigil smiled, before his breathing stoppped instantly and his whole body fell limp. The Doctor watched Sarah by his side for a few moments, before he helped her to her feet, hugging her tightly.

"I'm sorry, Sarah," the Doctor said as he released the hug.

"It's not your fault, Doctor," Sarah replied with a small smile, "It was his choice." The Doctor was, surprisingly, silent. The Brigadier entered the lab again, having left with his soldiers to find their other soldiers before and looked curious. Sarah and the Doctor were both fine, but the other boy, he was dead on the floor.

"Burn the body," the Doctor ordered.

"Now Doctor, this body could mean the difference—" the Brigadier began, but the Doctor cut him off.

"It could also lead to the extinction of the human race, and we both do not want that, now do we?" The Doctor said quickly, "Sarah, could you get me a match?"

"Alright, Doctor," Sarah replied and quickly looked through the lab desks, which were still filled with the Doctor's old stuff, finding a box of matches and handing them to the Doctor, who lit the match and touched it to Axigil's skin, instantly catching the whole body on fire, quickly burning away.

"The Trywalder Blood Fever makes the body extremely flammable, and if not burned, the body would infect all those near it, ten minutes or so after death," the Doctor explained, throwing the box of matches onto a lab desk and walking towards the door. "You can keep the other body. You'll find that it's human. The Camelion Arch she used did a very thorough job on her." Sarah followed the Doctor out, and the Brigadier looked at the body of Ilbial before turning to follow the Doctor.

"Are you going to come back to UNIT?" The Brigadier asked.

"Oh yes," the Doctor called, walking away from him with Sarah following still, "Just not the way you might expect. Two months. Give or take a year." He could almost feel the annoyed look the Brigadier was giving him. "Until then, you know where I am. Only in emergencies, alright?" The Doctor and Sarah turned a corner, leaving the Brigadier behind.

"So, let me get this straight," Sarah began, "Ilbial crashed here, changed into a human, to blend in, using this Arch thing, and somehow got her ship up into space, unable to break orbit, all while she was trying to find a way to regenerate."

"In a nutshell, yes," the Doctor replied as they walked out and took a familiar bright yellow car from the car lot.

"And Ilbial infected me with that... Try harder blood fever?" Sarah asked.

"As a last revenge against those who interfered," the Doctor explained with a large smile, "But now that's over, and I can get back to growing my TARDIS." The Doctor started the car and began driving back to Sarah's house. The two were silent for a little bit longer until Sarah broke the silence.

"I'll help," Sarah said with a large smile.

"Oh no, you need rest Sarah," the Doctor replied with a huge smile.

"The day's still young, Doctor," Sarah replied with a laugh, believing him joking.

"It has already been a long one," the Doctor noted.

"I'm going to help and you can't stop me. After all, who else will make you eat?" Sarah asked. They pulled up to the house and parked in the drive way.

"Good question," the Doctor said, getting out of the car and shutting the car door making his way up to the house, "Maybe you could make me... a grilled cheese sandwich? I've always—"

He didn't get to finish his sentence, for as he walked up to the house, he tripped over his long colorful scarf. At least he was able to target his fall and mostly landed on the grass next to the sidewalk he had been walking on. He could hear Sarah laughing, though she was trying not to. The Doctor looked up at her, seeing she was standing on the end of his scarf, yanking it, causing Sarah to fall towards him. He miscalculated the force and angle to pull at, thinking she was fall next to him, and instead, she fell right on top of him, catching herself on her hands and knees, hovering right over him. Sarah studied him, her laughing gone, and The Doctor returned with one of his crazy smiles.

"I've always wanted to try a grilled cheese sandwich," The Doctor said happily. Sarah laughed and pushed herself up off of The Doctor, and he did the same.

"If a grilled cheese is what you want, grilled cheese is what you're going to get," Sarah replied with a smile as The Doctor threw the ends of the scarf around his neck.

"I'll check on the TARDIS," The Doctor said walking into the house and making a beeline for the garage.

"I'll go get you your sandwich," Sarah laughed walking to the kitchen. She made the sandwiches, the way her aunt was famous in her family for, and went to the garage to find The Doctor. He didn't even seem to notice her. "I've got your sandwich." He didn't reply. He was examining the machine he had built around the little piece of coral. She could still see the coral behind the jumble of cords; it had grown to at least double the size it had been. If it kept growing at this rate… After just a couple days. She could see where he had used what once was a cabinet, which was broken apart and scattered amongst the cords, serving some purpose she didn't know. The Doctor was mumbling something to himself as he stood looking at the device.

"759," The Doctor said quietly to himself.

"759?" Sarah asked. The Doctor turned to look at her and with a huge smile on his face, he took a sandwich from the plate, taking a bite.

"759 more days. That's how long it would take if I just let it sit here," The Doctor explained, "Less than 759 days left. Then I can leave."

**Wasn't the happiest with this chapter, but it's done! And a new poll is up on my profile for suggestions for other stories based upon this concept. **


End file.
